Inca Trail 4 days | Take a Private Machu Picchu Hiking Tour or Hike the Classic Inca Trail in a Private Group! Experience the famous Inca Trail for 4 amazing days, and pass through the Sun Gate at sunrise for that first magical sighting of Machu Picchu… with your group, and your group only!
Make your Inca Trail Trek private: enjoy everything that our group Inca Trail trek offers, with your own dedicated trail team.
Tour Type: Hiking, camping, adventure, history
Total Distance: 43km/26 miles
Difficulty: Challenging
Considerations: Permit required.
Flexible plans: book your trip now, without being charged today.
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Your Machu Picchu hiking tours begin the night before when there will be a briefing with your trekking tour guide, at 6:30 p.m. at your hotel. We can arrange this for a different time if needed. In the morning to begin your 4 day inca trail hike we will pick you up from your hotel with our private transportation (time depending on your location). You will take a stunning drive to the trailhead KM 82, and see a great view of the Andes along the way. Your chef will prepare breakfast at the trailhead and display your passport to the checkpoint. Finally, you will start the first two and a half hours of the hike. It will be pretty flat until you arrive at the Inca site of Llactapata. You will have the first taste of Incan culture, and learn about the history of Peru. After your first Inca lesson, it will be another hour and a half until we arrive at the lunch stop. After lunch, we will have some time to rest and then continue for another two and a half hours until we reach our first camp at Ayapata.
14 km
3,300 meters
You will be woken up with a hot cup of coca tea at 4:45 a.m, followed by a nutritious breakfast. At 6:15 a.m., we will begin hiking towards the highest point of the Inca Trail, Dead Women’s Pass (4,215 meters). It will be a four-hour climb, through different microclimates, with amazing views of the mountains. It is difficult trekking at this elevation, so there will be a lot of breaks along the way. Once you reach the summit, your porters will be waiting with a hot glass of tea, and you will have some time to enjoy it. You will then hike for another hour and a half downhill through Inca steps until you arrive at your lunch spot. After lunch, you will have another four hours, including breaks until you will reach your campsite at Chaquicocha. There you will get to visit two Inca sites, Runku Raccay and Sayacmarka. You will finish the day with dinner at the campsite.
16 km
3,600 meters
You will be woken up with a hot cup of tea, followed by breakfast. Following, you will begin your two-hour hike to the last pass of Phuyupatamarca, which is at 3,680 mm. This section has unique views of the Vilcabamba mountain range and Salkantay mountain. On the three hour continuation to our campsite, we will visit two Inca sites, Phuyupatamarca (Village above Clouds) and Intipata (Terraces of the Sun).
Along the way, you will discover different types of plants, flowers, and birds in the forest. After lunch, you may take the five-minute walk to the most beautiful Inca site of the trail, Wiñay Wayna (Forever Young). This place is full of impressive buildings and terraces. Around 5:30 p.m., you will go back to the campsite for your last happy hour and dinner. Then a small ceremony, to say thank you, and goodbye to your amazing “green machine” porters. If you choose, you may leave a gift to say thank you. You may find more information on that under the tab Included.
10 km
2,600 meters
Today marks the most important day of your journey: the long-awaited visit to the citadel of Machu Picchu, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
We will wake up very early at 3:00 a.m. at the Wiñaywayna campsite. Breakfast will be served at 3:30 a.m., and at 4:00 a.m., we will begin a short walk to the park ranger checkpoint, where we will wait in line until the gate opens at 5:30 a.m.
Why so early? Our porters must walk approximately 1 hour from Wiñaywayna to the railway at Kilometer 107 to catch the only daily train that passes at 5:30 a.m. If they miss it, they would have to walk all the way to Km 82 or wait until the next day. Out of respect for their effort, all groups wake up early so the porters can make it on time. Your duffle bags will be transported by the porters to Aguas Calientes and left at a restaurant where you’ll later have lunch.
The checkpoint at Wiñaywayna opens at 5:30 a.m. because this section of the Inca Trail leading to the Sun Gate is narrow and, for safety reasons, park rangers do not allow tourists to hike it in the dark.
The hike from the checkpoint to the Sun Gate (Intipunku) takes about 1 hour, during which you’ll enjoy lush flora such as orchids and cloud forests. Just before arriving, you’ll encounter the steep “Gringo Killer” stairs, a section of about 20 Inca steps.
Upon reaching Intipunku, you’ll enjoy your first panoramic view of Machu Picchu in all its glory. This gate served as the main entrance to the citadel during Incan times and also as a solar observation point during the spring solstice, when sunlight passed through the gate and illuminated the Sun Temple window.
We will spend 15 to 30 minutes at the Sun Gate, depending on the weather, and then continue for another hour of gentle downhill hiking to reach Machu Picchu. Along the way, you’ll see spectacular views of the citadel, Huayna Picchu, the Urubamba River, and the surrounding valleys.
At approximately 7:30 to 8:00 a.m., we’ll arrive at the main lookout point of Machu Picchu, the iconic spot where postcard photos are taken. You’ll have about 30 minutes to enjoy the view and take photos with help from your guide. For many, this is the moment when the dream of “surviving the Inca Trail” comes true.
After taking pictures, we’ll briefly exit the citadel to use the restrooms (S/2), and anyone with large backpacks can leave them in the storage area (US$5).
We will then re-enter to begin a guided tour along Circuit 3, which covers the most iconic areas of Machu Picchu: temples, palaces, religious houses, water fountains, and astronomical observatories. Your guide will explain every detail, and you’ll also have time to take photos.
After the guided tour of Machu Picchu:
• Travelers with Huayna Picchu tickets will continue to the entry checkpoint to begin the hike independently.
• The rest of the group will visit additional areas of the citadel, including the Temple of the Condor, with extra time to explore and take photos on their own.
• Once everyone finishes inside the site, you will exit together and take the bus down to Aguas Calientes.
Lunch in Aguas Calientes is not included, giving you the chance to choose from a variety of restaurants in town or follow guide`s recommendation.
After lunch:
• You will board the tourist train to Ollantaytambo at a scheduled time between 2:30 p.m. and 3:48 p.m., subject to availability. The journey lasts about 1 hour 45 minutes, offering great views of the river and surrounding mountains.
• Upon arrival, a private Alpaca Expeditions bus will take you back to Cusco, approximately 2 more hours.
• Arrival time in Cusco is typically between 6:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., depending on train availability and traffic. Your stored luggage will be returned to you and you will be dropped off at your hotel.
5 km
2,400 meters
Alpaca Expeditions is a 100% peruvian, indigenous owned company. Started by Raul Ccolque, a former porter and tour guide, Alpaca Expeditions separates ourselves by our dedication to both our customer and our team. We work very hard to make sure that all our clients needs are taken care of throughout the tour with us. At the same time, we never forget about our brothers and sisters working tirelessly for us to make all of this possible. Responsible and sustainable tourism that gives as much to our community as to our clients.
Everyone on the Alpaca Team is from Cusco region, living the traditions and history they share with you while on one of our tours. Our guides are all graduates of university studying tourism, history and english. Our chefs are trained every February by a professional cooking team learning new meals, adding varieties of entrees for all types of eating. And all our porters are from HUARQUI, HUACAHUASI, PATACANCHA, QUISWARANI, CANCHACANCHA, QUEYUPAY, UMACHURCO and CCACCACCOLLO villages, very often working this job on top of maining their farms back at home. Most of our team has been with us for years, as we have the most loyal, hard working, happy employees in Cusco. We know how lucky we are to have the best team trekking and you will immediately fall in love with all the men and women who call Alpaca Expeditions their home.
Our goal at Alpaca Expeditions is to create the best experience for all of our clients. We create journeys that are to be remembered for a lifetime. Journeys you can be proud of and can share with everybody around you.
In the pursuit to stand out from the rest, Alpaca Expeditions has obtained four ISOs plus our carbon footprint certificate to date. These achievements result from our efforts to implement the internationally-recognized integrated management system. They also represent our commitment to all of our clients and staff of operating sustainability and responsibility in every way possible.
